European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

EVALUATION OF HEPATOPROTECTIVE AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF ALTERNANTHERA SESSILIS (LINN.) ON PARACETAMOL INDUCED HEPATOTOXICITY IN RATS

Mrinmay Das*, Ashok Kumar D., Jyotirmoy Deb, Durga Srinivas Rao and K. Mastanaiah

ABSTRACT

The ethanolic extract of Alternanthera sessilis Linn. (Amaranthaceae) aerial parts were investigated for any in-vitro and in-vivo antioxidant and hepatoprotective effects. Ethanolic extract of Alternanthera sessilis (EEAS) was prepared and acute toxicity study was carried out to fix the dose. Different groups of animals were administered with paracetamol (500 mg/kg, PO, once in a day for 7 days). EEAS at the dose of 200 and 400 mg/kg/day and silymarin at 25 mg/kg/day were administered to the paracetamol treated rats for seven days. The effects of EEAS and silymarin on serum transaminases (SGOT, SGPT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bilirubin (Direct and Total), cholesterol (HDL and Total) and total protein were measured in the paracetamol-induced hepatotoxic rats. Further, the effects of the extract on lipid peroxidation (LPO), thaiobarbituric acids (TBARS), glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were estimated. EEAS at dose of 400mg/kg and silymarin produced significant (p < 0.05) hepatoprotective effect by decreasing the activity of serum enzymes, bilirubin, total cholesterol and in-vivo lipid peroxidation and significantly (p < 0.05) increasing the levels of GSH, SOD, CAT and HDL cholesterol than the dose of 200mg/kg. From the results, it was suggested that EEAS could protect the liver cells from paracetamol induced liver damage by its antioxidative effect on hepatocytes, hence eliminating the deleterious effects of toxic metabolites of paracetamol which is dose dependent.

Keywords: Alternanthera sessilis, Hepatoprotective effect, Antioxidants, Paracetamol.